


The Myth of Dark Eye

by SongsofPsyche



Category: Creation Myth - Fandom, Jan Term Inklings, Mythology - Fandom, Original Creation Myth
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-28
Updated: 2013-02-28
Packaged: 2017-12-03 21:00:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/702595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SongsofPsyche/pseuds/SongsofPsyche
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This was the final project for  Jan Term 2013 at Saint Mary's College of California.  As a class, we studied three of The Inklings (JRR Tolkien, C.S Lewis and Charles Williams), and then used them as an influence to create our own original work.</p>
    </blockquote>





	The Myth of Dark Eye

**Author's Note:**

> This was the final project for Jan Term 2013 at Saint Mary's College of California. As a class, we studied three of The Inklings (JRR Tolkien, C.S Lewis and Charles Williams), and then used them as an influence to create our own original work.

 

 

The University of California Institute of Archeological Research was located in a series of buildings in Berkeley that had formally been a Spanish mission. The facility’s chapel had been redesigned as a conference room, complete with a podium, computer and projector. Now, standing at this podium, Dr. Annie Friedman stood looking down before her at the fourteen scientists that sat in front of her and rustled her papers nervously wishing that she didn't have to do this. The search for knowledge should not have to come with such a big price tag.

 

Almost a year had passed since she had accidentally knocked the ancient scroll of Dark Eye out from it’s hiding place and had translated it from into English. It had caused quite the uproar, for it told the story of the universe but questioned the very existence of  God himself. Now, there were rumors of a cave that had been found in the south of Slovenia; a dark cave with whispers of  unknown secrets. Unfortunately, to pursue these secrets, Dr. Friedman needed a research grant.  She nervously drew breathe. _This is it._ She thought, _calm and steady now._ She nodded to the crowd and all went silent.

 

“Gentlemen, I would like to talk to you about the whereabouts of the Cave of Dark Eye.”

She ignored the eye rolls, but one raised his hand and said; “ If this is another proposal about the Myth of Urth. I would like to stop right now. It is a legend, there is no historical accuracy to it at all.”Angrily, Annie pointed to the object on the screen above her.

“This scroll contains the answers we have been looking for all these years---”

“We have no time for this. It is a _myth_ it is not real.”

Annie sighed, this was what had stopped the last three research faculties from accepting her proposal. 

 

“I have translated the scrolls into English.” Annie told him sternly, “If you would kindly listen to my explanation, then maybe your view on what is and is not a  fairy tale could change.”

And reluctantly they let her. Annie took a deep breath, then clicked the remote so the image of the hieroglyphics appeared on the overhead projection, the image slightly distorted by the painted cross of the long forgotten chapel. Then she began her recitation;

 

_“In the beginning, there was only darkness._ No light, no air, no stars. This desolate space, full of nothing was looked down upon by the Godfather. A being of the most importance, for he was the Onar, creator of all things. In this ominous space there was darkness, a force of unnamed evil and  it took over everything it touched, it was a destroyer of light.  Each time the Godfather tried to create a world of life, this unknown darkness would descent down upon it and consume it. The Godfather tried his best to fight this darkness, for he was strong, but  it was stronger. The Godfather named this evil presence Mor, and vowed to defeat it. But it was all the Godfather could do to prevent it from taking over.  The Godfather fought bravely and valiantly with his son by his side defending his honor, until one day he found himself all alone, for the darkness had taken everything. Sitting in his now abandoned fortress, The Godfather  felt overwhelmed with grief. Until finally, the need for companionship overtook him. He looked around in the darkness, and then saw a twinkle of red, he walked towards it and saw that it was a a single pomegranate, the last on the tree. As he approached it, it glowed brighter, and then it began to speak, “Behold!” it said  “ Thou shall not  be wasted among this darkness. Whilst ye have grieved, I have come. Take upon me my golden seeds and blow, for you  were destined to create a new beginning.”  The Godfather then reach up and  plucked the glowing fruit from it’s branch.,   He took a deep breathe, blew life into it. 

 

It exploded with a bang, knocking the godfather off his feet and then there was light. The light exploded from the single pomegranate and the godfather watched as a a  bright hole appeared in the sky where the pomegranate had been. Before the God father’s eyes the fruit opened, and from the seeds sprouted life; the planets,  the air, the sun and the trees. A new universe full of life that was lit with such a bright light that the darkness of Mor could not enter it.  

 

Dr. Friedman paused, hearing rustles and murmurs from the crowd as they heard the familiar references to the controversial cosmological theory. She clicked her powerpoint to the next slide, showing a modern day diagram of the Universe’s creation, and then the accompanying pictograph she had found in the scrolls. 

“As you see here, this event described in the myth is similar to our own theories of this development.”  

 

She saw heads nod, this was the furthest she had ever gotten in the retelling of the scroll. All the others had stopped her, deeming the myth false before she finished. She smiled, and then continued:

 

“The Godfather then floated among this new universe and saw one solitary planet. And he decided that this would be his planet, calling it Urth. A single seed of the pomegranate had floated up into the sky, and created a bright beam of light. Hotter than anything the Godfather had seen, it spread it’s rays upon Urth and made things grow. Urth circled around this golden orb, turning so all sides of the planet could be touched by it’s rays.  The peaks from the mountains reached far into a deep blue sky and all was at peace. He watched as flowers began to bloom, and small creatures with scales and fins began to crawl up from the sea.  He watched for a hundred years as these small creatures changed and grew until finally he saw a figure climb out of the trees, walking on two legs. He felt a strong connection to this being for  it carried a sense of intelligence. So he declared this creature above all others and made it his duty to guide it through the ages. He named it the Suthri, His Kind.  

 

“Stop!” 

Dr. Freidman looked up from her notes and saw that one of the members had stood.

“Yes?”

“A hundred years?” he asked in disbelief

“ _Yes._ I know, that puzzled me too but we can only assume that the scroll means 100 _Godfather_ years. It could be 100 years to us, but 2 billion years for him, see?”

The scientist nodded but said nothing but, “Please continue.”

 

“In order to guide these new beings through the levels of intelligent development, the Godfather then decided that he should create a counsel of his own to help guide His Kind.. He  took a bit of his own soul and created Andvari, and deemed him the God of knowledge, a Sub -God to the Godfather. Andvari, wise and powerful, presented His Kind with many gifts of exploration. Together, The Godfather  and Andvari watched over them with love: when they saw tHis Kind shiver with cold at night, Andvari gave them fire.  When Drought came he gave them the gift of toolmaking and watched with pride as they created  pottery to hold water.  When the many beasts of Urth attacked the villages, they created the Bow and Arrow to counter their attacks. When all was dark during the night and gloom descended upon thethem, they created instruments of song to counter their fear with music.

 

The Godfather then noticed that His Kind  were suffering from the constant heat of the sun, and the coldness of the darkness. So he took another small piece from his soul and created Vestri, the goddess of the earth to watch over the growth of the flora, fauna and weather. Not too long after Vestri was created, the Godfather noticed that many of His Kind died, and felt pity, for he did not know where then went when they died. So he took a third piece of his soul and created Austri ,the God of death and sent him to live below the earth to take care of the dead. 

 

For a century and a half the Godfather and his creations lived in peace. Watching over the development of His Kind below them, and rejoicing in their success as a species. Deep down below them in the Dark Eye,which is what the Godfather named the land of the dead, Austri watched in annoyance. He was jealous of their merrymaking, for he was all alone As he lived sullenly in his fortress, his treacherous feelings towards the Godfather, and His Kind multiplied, enough so that it caught the attention of Mor. So it lurked there, down with him among the crowds of the dead. Waiting for a moment to be released upon the world and devour it.  

 

Austri’s job was to carry the souls of the dead to the after life and to make sure they never left Dark Eye. It was a dire job, for who would want to stay in a place of such misery for all of eternity? It was not all darkness though, because the Godfather knew that The Darkness lurked near Dark eye, and feared that it would one day corrupt  the Lord of the Dead. The Godfather had journeyed down to Dark Eye and planted the last remaining seed of the pomegranate in the ground himself.  The seed grew into a glowing tree, full of fruit; a light of hope in the darkness that  not only supplied Austri with the food that he need to survive in Dark Eye but also kept Mor at bay. 

 

Oh! How the souls of the dead would long for a bite of this precious fruit, for it would grant them access to the living again. But Austri was greedy, he did not want to share this mighty gift from the Godfather with anybody else. Austri then realized that if the Godfather had created him from his soul, couldn’t Austri create too? He then took a bit of his own soul and created a tall being to guard the tree. But, this was unlike the creations of the Godfather, this was a monster for Austri did not have the power of a creator, nor the patience to parent his creation. So Austri continued to be lonely.

 

Out on the Surface, in the land of the Godfather, Vestri lived a peaceful life. She, the Goddess of the earth, weather and all things green worked hard to make the environment suitable for the God Kind, to make sure that their crops grew in summer, their livestock never got sick and kept the floods away from their villages. She too, was lonely for she was the only one of the Gods to live on the Surface, instead of in the Palace with the other gods. She begged and begged the Godfather for a companion, but the Godfather did not want to risk  any more of his servants or Gods. When Vestri found that she could not have one, she decided to make one herself, for if the Godfather could create her, why couldn't she? She was a God after all. She reached down into her heart and took a piece  of her soul, then forming it into the shape of a seed planted it into the ground and waited. She cared for it with love, watering and trimming the seed until it had blossomed into a rose. When the rose bloomed, out sprung a fully grown being; a demi God. More beautiful than anything on earth. Vestri was overjoyed and immediately loved the being like she was her own daughter. She embraced her, and named her Nali and declared her Goddess of the flowers. 

 

And everything was well with the world.

 

It wasn't long until Austri longed to venture up to the surface. He had begun to feel restless inside his cave of darkness, so he took his hands and carved out a tunnel that connected the Surface with Dark Eye. One day, as he was lurking idly through the bushes not too far from the entrance of his tunnel, Austri saw Nali sitting by a river gathering up Daphne flowers for her dinner table. And something very unusual happened; he feel desperately, hopelessly in love with her. His longing for a companion overcame his sensibility as he rushed towards her, arms open, welcoming her. She started with fright when she saw him. He scared her, for he was not good looking, the darkness had left it’s mark upon his face.  She got up and ran, crying to Vestri.

 

Dr. Friedman paused again for emphasis, “This description here, of Austri tunneling up from Dark Eye, could be referencing the cave found in Slovenia. The river Vipava is the only place where the _Daphne blagayana_ flowers grow. They are not found anywhere else.”

 

“Yes, the evidence is very compelling, please continue.”

 

“Three times this happened, until finally Austri realized that if he wanted her, he was going to have to take her. Nali was sitting peacefully by her stream, as always unaware of the dangers before her. She was pleasantly surprised by a blooming flower, but just as she reached to pluck it a dark cloud begun billowing over from a cave on the other side of the stream. Frozen with fear, Nali watched as it crept towards her, nearer and nearer until it half engulfed her.  Then the earth split open, and out came Austri, riding one of his horrendous creations.  In cold, strong arms Austri seized her around the waist and flung her across his shoulders. Nali shivered at his icy touch, and wept at the loss of the flower that she never picked. Austri dragged her cruelly into his underworld against her will, and immediately made her his Queen. All Nali could do was weep though, because she missed Vestri, and the sun and the light. 

 

In Dark Eye, Nali wandered through the halls, looking for something, anything that would remind her  of the Surface. Suddenly a  glint of golden light caught her eye. She followed it until she saw the Pomegranate tree, glistening and sparkling in the darkness. Curiosity over came her and she drew near it but  the creature guarding it saw her, and little did she know, he had been corrupted by Mor. It backed down and bowed, allowing her go touch the tree. He knew that if he persuaded her to eat a piece of the forbidden fruit the shields that the God Father had created would fall, and  the darkness would once again descend upon the world.

 

Nali looked at the glistening fruit, and all of sudden she felt that this fruit was all  she ever wanted in her entire life. “Go on.” said the guard with a smile, but Nali paused, for she knew that if she ate anything of the Dark Eye she would be trapped forever. She looked upon the tree, longing for a taste of the world that she was taken from. “I should not.” she said, looking at the guard, who had crept closer and watched her. “Why not?” the guard asked, “I shall not tell Austri, if that is what you’re worried about. “I just want a taste of home.” she whispered as she laid a hand on the fruit. “

 

“Eat it, and it will transport you home.” the guard  lied, hoping to convince her.  She reached up and plucked one of the golden bulbs from the tree. It glittered and twinkled delightfully in her eyes. She then opened it up forgetting that if she did she would be lost to her home forever, and ate seven of the golden seeds inside. The change was instant as with each seed she ate a part of the carefully crafted shield the Godfather created went down. Mor curled in delight and slowly crept up and out from Dark Eye, releasing the agents of darkness upon Urth. 

 

On the surface, Vestri felt the darkness decent, and she quickened her pace as she searched for her long lost companion. Finally, came upon the entrance of Dark Eye, the last place in all of Urth that she wanted to look and hoped that she would not find Nali there. She ran into the underworld, and felt cold. She found Austri in his royal room  and next to him sat Nali sitting on her  own throne. Vestri felt cold as  she realized that she had been too late to save her companion, for Nali had already eaten of Love’s seed and changed into another. “Please, daughter” she said, “Come back up with me to The Surface. Come play with me in the river and  pick flowers in the meadow.” She begged and pleaded with her, but Nali would not listen “I am fine here now, ‘tis not that bad..” Nali assured the God. She was calmer for she had changed now, and wanted to stay. The darkness of Mor had found it’s way into her soul and had corrupted her.  Vestri then left Dark eye and rushed up out from the underworld and  back to the Godfather’s fortress. There, She told him what happened and he was worried, for the darkness of Mor had been released again. 

 

Mor consumed  Austri and forced him to do his bidding.  Once again Austri delve down into his soul and created a creature, then another, then another. Soon, he had an army large enough to destroy all of His Kind. They thrived in the darkness, sweeping over the Urth like a veil of smoke for they could not live in the light of Godfather. His Kind fought valiantly against this darkness, but the darkness prevailed. 

 

The Godfather watched in horror as the darkness took over, destroying everything with it.  The Godfather then reached down into the underworld, and came across the last living seed of the pomegranate picked by Nali. He plucked it up, and for the last time breathed life into it. It floated up into the air, out of the atmosphere and into the universe, burning a bright blue light upon Urth. This light  consumed the dark creatures of Austri, and devoured the darkness until there was nothing left. 

 

As they fought this never-ending battle, His Kind were startled by a strange light from the East, and they looked up into the sky in awe, for what they saw was beyond all their beliefs; a giant orb in the sky, it beamed down upon them and thus the darkness was sent back into Dark Eye.  They threw up their arms into the sky and rejoiced over the defeat of the darkness. They looked up upon this gleaming orb and named it Luna, guardian of the sky. The Godfather then s--…..” 

 

There was a pause, and then Dr. Friedman looked up at her audience.

“Well, what happened?” one member asked anxiously, for they all have been enraptured in the telling.

Dr. Friedman shook her head, “That is the end of the translation. The Runes were cut off after that. I am hoping that the rest will be in Slovenia.” She finished, and then waited with baited breathe, looking up over the podium at the small group of scientists and was pleased to see that they had gone silent in astonishment, “At this time, I’ll be taking questions.” She prompted them.

 

 One of the scientists raised his hand and asked  "How do you know that is true?". Dr. Freidman smiled, then gestured to the hearth, "Look around you, feel the air in your lungs, see the light coming from the sky.” she pulls back the curtains at the dimming twilight, "look at the moon".  “It is all right here before us. How can we not believe it?  This is _real._ Science is real, man has a destiny and I want to find it.”

 

Despite their skepticism towards legends and myths the members of the group nodded in approval for, in their hearts, they knew that Dr. Annie Friedman was right.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! This was the product of four intensive weeks of writing, rewriting and learning a hell of a lot about what it means to be an author of fantasy fiction. Constructive criticism and reviews are appreciated!


End file.
